Thread by @shayshinecastle

I got here an hour early and oh, boy, the things I've heard already.

Right now, a lady is telling two people, "That's classist. I don't even want to listen."
And the ppl are saying, "You can judge me. I don't care."

#Boulder, it's going to be a WILD city council night.

I'll get this out of the way early. Here's what we've got going on tonight. In the low-stress, yay! Boulder category: Council is contemplating updating its city language to be more gender inclusive, and considering add'l protections under hate crimes ordinances.

We last visited this all the way back in February. (You'll have to scroll down to read the pertinent parts.) boulderbeat.news/2019/02/24/cou…

In the not-so-fun and highly contentious part, we will likely have a *LONG* public hearing on the Alpine-Balsam. Here's where we left off, in June. boulderbeat.news/2019/06/06/wit…

Here's what I wrote today, about Think Boulder's public campaign: boulderbeat.news/2019/08/27/no-…

Some more sniping: Two gentleman (apparently neighbors).
Guy 1 (with the neighborhood group): I like you as a person and neighbor, but I don't think you're being upfront.
Guy 2: I *am* being upfront.

OK, we're getting started. Carlisle is not here, as per my Alpine-Balsam story.

Special meeting, so no open comment. First up: hate crime amendments. Here's the staff presentation: www-static.bouldercolorado.gov/docs/5A5B_Ords…

Wait, actually first: Honoring outgoing police chief Greg Testa

Not like, he's an outgoing guy. He's retiring.

OK, NOW amendments to the municipal hate crimes ordinance.

Nikhil Mankekar, chair of the Human Relations Commission, initiated this effort in December 2017.

What's being considered: Language to cover mixed-motive crimes, in which bias is not the main crime. (So, if someone hits you with their car, that’s the main crime, but if they call you a slur, that could be charged as a separate crime.)

Any crime found to have an element of bias would result in additional sentencing.

Another change: Language to protect religious expression, such as wearing a hijab.

”Hair, including that which is uncut and unshorn, head coverings, and garments” will be added to the definition.

Why are we doing this, asks Clay Fong, staff liaison to the HRC.

Here's why: Hate crimes are on the rise nationally.

Across the country, hate crimes motivated by religious bias accounted for 1,679 reported offenses in 2017 according to FBI statistics. 23% increase from 2016

Top two categories of offenses:
58.1% were anti-Jewish (37% increase from 2016)
18.7% were anti-Islamic

However, according to the DOJ, 54% of hate crimes go unreported.

Reported Boulder hate crimes:
2017: 3
2016: 4
2015: 1

But public feedback to the HRC suggests that hateful incidents are more frequent in Boulder than numbers suggest.

RE: The religious expression additions. Law covers places of worship pretty well in hate crime incidents, Clay Fong, HRC staff liaison, says. But it doesn't protect ppl expressing their religion outside of places of worship: Praying, or wearing identifiable symbols of religion.

This has become a particular issue nationally for Jewish and Muslim people, as well as Sikhs.

“According to a report released earlier this year by South Asian Americans Leading Together, violence against Muslims, Arabs, Sikhs and other south Asians rose 64% in the year after November 2016."

"In one-fifth of these incidents, the perpetrators mentioned Trump, or a Trump policy, or a Trump campaign slogan.”

Here's why adding to the definitions matter: It's hard to prosecute without very specific language, Fong says. It's the same reason the mixed-motivation language is so important. Without it, it's hard to convict hateful actions in multi-crime situations.

Janet Micheals from the city atty office giving examples of hair that would be covered under the religious expression: unshorn Jewish orthodox locks (I think they're called payot) and Rastafarian dreadlocks.

It could also cover facial hair, such as Sikh beards. Very broad.

It also covers garments (yarmulkes, hijab, etc.) under a definition of religious garb.

Quick break to say it is a *very* packed meeting room. I see just a couple empty seats. Overflow seating has been set up downstairs.

Some other things covered under the religious expression language: Dietary restrictions or abstaining from certain activities. (Like Jehovah's Witnesses and the National Anthem or the Pledge of Allegiance. They don't do those. Or holidays.)

HRC's Mankekar is speaking now. He largely led this effort. "What we've seen as a commission since the 2016 election ... we usually don't have high attendance. We had a packed house that night (after the election)." Ppl from multiple groups talking about hate incidents.

Vandalism, having head coverings torn off.

"We live in a really different time now when it comes to bias and hate, nationally and locally," he says.

"We need to be innovative and be responsive to the new landscape." In Colorado, hate crimes have doubled in the state.

More people are reporting hate crimes to the HRC than to the police, Mankekar says. "Victims do not feel comfortable coming forward and reporting them. People don't feel their religious expression will be understood (or) taken seriously."

Cases get dropped; they're extremely difficult to prove bc of motive, he says. So people lose faith that they can get a prosecution.

"Naming those things are really important, bc when ppl see a council and staff has named these things in the law, it builds confidence that someone understands me. Someone has looked into these issues and knows what my religious expression is."

The "last thing" you want after being assaulted is to have to explain your religion to the cops, Mankekar says.

Q from Yates: Anything that didn't make it in here that you considered?

Mankekar: "This is where we all need to be."

Some things were looked at (adding protected classes such as homelessness, but it's covered by state laws for at-risk persons).

Or they could be, Mankekar says, if state law were amended. Apologies for jumping the gun; I misunderstood the staff memo.

Young: Any data on how ordinances like this increase reporting?
Mankekar: Not exactly, but one of the big reasons for not reporting is that there aren't protections in the law.

"We hope it will help."

Brockett reading a letter from Joe Neguse supporting these changes. He thanks Mankekar, who thanks former councilwoman Jill Grano.

Only two people signed up for the public hearing, including Mankekar himself, taking off his HRC chair hat.

He's speaking for himself. "Hate crimes are what motivated me to get involved in the first place in city gov't. ... I've had my own experiences with hate. I'm a second generation immigrant. In taking up this law, it will make me personally feel more protected as an Indian Sikh."

"My whole life changed about a decade ago. I was attacked in a hate crime in my own hometown. (Boulder) The impact of going through that, not even the crime itself, but coming forward to report that to the police... knowing what it is to go through the system as a victim..."

"... was a totally new experience for me. It made me get involved in helping other victims."

"I know what it took in me to come forward and speak out, and the retaliation and impact that happened to me after that. ... I didn't think there was any way I could come back from that. I didn't feel the community supported me."

"I just had faith that I could someday do something about that."

"What we're doing is really important. People think they don't happen in Boulder, but just bc it doesn't happen to you doesn't mean it's not happening."

Morzel thanking Mankekar for his courage in coming forward, and remembering his HRC interview and relaying his experiences with hateful incidents.

"This council cannot thank you enough," Morzel says. "You've shown incredible leadership."

Oh, jk, there was a mix-up on the public hearing list. There are more than 2 speakers!

Now we are fully full in the chambers. The first aisle-sitter has been turned away by the cops. (It's against fire codes.)

Sara-Jane Cohen is here from the Anti-Defamation League for the Rocky Mountains. ADL met with HRC and city staff to work on these changes, which they support.

"Colorado has strong hate crime laws on the books. It’s important to take proactive steps to plug the holes," she says. Boulder is sending a "strong message" that they want to protect vulnerable residents.

Stan Deetz, also of the HRC: "To really hear how much pain exists in our city … how much fear ppl walk around with, has been startling to me."

Emma Cating-Subramanian: "We absolutely must do more to combat the rise of hate crimes." Supports the expanded language, but questions sentence enhancements. More jail time could increase hate, she says. Boulder should require restorative justice.

Victims should be able to opt out, of course, she said.

"Prison is often the cause of, not the solution, to radicalization. Prisons are breeding grounds for extremism."

So restorative justice would be better to protect victims of hate crimes. "We must make sure the steps we take don't make it worse."

Council noting that the municipal court offers restorative justice in lieu of extra jail time, if everyone involved agrees.

And we're voting....

Well, we're moving, but then we'll be voting.

Weaver: "When anyone is mistreated, it diminished us all."

Unanimous.

Motion passes. I'mma keep this thread open for the gender-inclusive language hearing. That is in the same staff presentation I linked to earlier.

These changes were proposed by OUT Boulder last year. The last update of the city's language (city documents, statutes, etc.) was 18 years ago. So things have changed, Fong says.

"Now we look at gender identity being more of the mind than of the body," he says.

Changing “sex” to “gender identity” in the city charter was OK’d by voters in November. This effort is focused on the Boulder Revised Code.

LOTS of little changes, but some of the big ones are changing key terms (like gender identity) and including more definitions of things: cisgender,” “discriminate,” “pansexual,” “sex,” “sexual orientation,” and “transgender"

This will also eliminate language relating to sex reassignment treatment and genital reassignment surgery.

There are also some protections for transgender individuals on city sports teams (rec leagues and such) and for sex-separated housing. They require that transgender individuals can go with the gender group that they are, not that they were assigned at birth.

95% of public feedback were supportive of these changes, Fong says.

RE: The sports, is that it doesn't apply to organizations bound by state or national entities. So, the NCAA or Olympic teams. They are exempted from these requirements.

and RE: housing: That wouldn't apply to homeowners renting out a room where they live, or duplexes where the homeowner lives in the other unit.

Mankekar back to laud staff, OUT Boulder and HRC's efforts to "get this right."

"While I do feel we're trying to stay ahead of things, we're also playing catch-up a bit, too."

"I believe we should allow ppl to be themselves and be themselves without being subject to harassment and slights. Seeing your identity named and recognized — there's something really meaningful to that."

Public hearing: Michal Duffy is up first. They work for OUT Boulder County.

"There are no federal protections like this. It's really important to have this at a local level."

There are high levels of discrimination that have real-world impacts on trans ppl, Duffy says: education, housing, stability. "We do have a significant trans population here in Boulder. Part of that is bc of the work of OUT Boulder County and the city of Boulder is doing."

Jones: We definitely thank you and OUT Boulder for your work on this.
Brockett echoes that.

Brockett makes a motion to pass these changes. "This is a really great step forward. Some of the language in our code is not just embarrassing, but shameful."

Another unanimous vote.

OK, that wraps this.

@threadreaderapp, please unroll. Thank you!